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TRIMMING ATTACHMENT FOR SEWING MACHINES. No. 369,658. Patented Sept. 6, 1887.

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UNITED STATES PATENT @EricE.

CARL G. BUTZ, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK.

TRIIVIMING ATTACHMENT FOR SEWING-MACHINES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 369,658, dated September 6,1887.

Application filed January 10, 1887. Serial No. 223,873. (No model.)

fi o ctZZ whom it may concern: Be it known that I, CARL G. BUTZ, of Brooklyn, in the county of Kings and State of New Yorlghaveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Sewing-Machine Trimmers;

and I do hereby declare that the following is a full and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings,and to the letters of reference marked thereon, making a part of this specification, in which Figure 1 is a side elevation of a sewing-machine having my improved trimmer attached thereto; Fig. 2, a plan View of the trimmer as fitted upon the machine in readiness for operation, the needle-bar of the machine being cut in transverse section; and Fig. 3, a front end view of the trimmer detached.

This invention relates to that class of attachments for sewingmachines which are designed to operate in cutting the edges of the stitched fabric in unison with the stitching thereof and in a line parallel with the line of stitches.

It has for its object to simplify the construction'and operation of such a device and to facilitate its adjustment and increase its efficiency. These objects are attained by the combination ofmechanical devices hereinafter particularly described.

In the accompanying drawings, A repre sents a bed-plate adapted to be fitted and secured in any suitable manner upon the bedplate or table of a sewing-machine. Upon this fixed bed-plate A a second plate, B,1's mounted and left free to slide longitudinally to and from its front end, said adjustable plate B being limited and guided in its movement by means of elongated slots 0 O at one end and a lateral slot, 0, through each of which a wide-headed pin or screw, D, is passed loosely and screwed or secured in the bed-plate A beneath. The plate B is moved and adjusted upon the bedplate A by means of a cam-plate and lever, E, pivoted to extend beyond the front edge of the plate A upon the screws D, which passesthrough the lateral slot 0 inthe plate B, said cam-plate being formed with a semicircular slot, F, therein, which is eccentric to the pivotscrew D,and into which a pin, G, projects upward from the adjustable plate B. Hence by turning the lever E to the right or left the plate B is forced in the opposite direction. (See dotted lines in Fig. 2.)

H represents a rock-shaft mounted longi tudinally in suitable bearings upon the adk justable plate B, so as to project beyond its front end, and I represents a cuttingblade fixed to the front end of said shaft by means of a screw, a. This cutting-blade is of such width as that its cutting-edge is carried down nearly to the level of the under side of the bedplate A, so as to be brought into the horizontal plane of the work moving over the table of the sewing-machine. (See Figs. 1 and 3.) The cut-tingedge of the blade is made tangential to a circle described about the axis of the rockshaft as its center, and is formed and adjusted to extend laterally from a point beneath said axis toward the front side of the plate A, as shown in Fig. 3.

A cutting-bar, J, is secured upon the end of a bent bar, K, to bear constantly against the heel of the cutting-blade I at a right angle to the axis of the rock-shaft H and to extend horizontally toward the front side of plate A as far as said blade, so that the blade in its movements shall intersect and pass over and along the edge of the cuttingbar, producing in connection therewith a drawing cut, so as to sever the fabric inserted between them in like manner as a pair of shears. I

The bar K is bent at a right angle, so as to admit of being supported in lateral bearings, 12 b, (see Fig. 2,) formed to receive it upon the rear side of the adjustable plate B, and it is so fitted in said bearings as to have a longitudinal play therein. A portion of its length between its bearings b b is threaded, as at c, Fig. 2. A milled nut, U, (see Fig. 2,) is run upon its threaded portion, and a spiral spring, V, is inserted between said nut and the front bearing, 1), so as to operate by its resiliency against An oscillating lever, L, (see Fig. 1,) is pivoted to a standard, M, secured upon the rear end of the adjustable plate B, so as to extend parallel with the rock-shaft H and in front thereofto the front end of the plate- This lever L is made in two lengths or sections, d e, the front length, d, being made to play longitudinally within the rear length, e, forming a telescopicjoint to admit of an adjustment of the length of the lever, the sections when adjusted being fixed by means of a set-screw, f. The front end of this oscillating lever L terminates in a ring, g,(see Figs. 2 and 3,) formed at a right angle to the lever and adapted to engage the customary needle-clamp screw on the needle-bar of the sewing-machine to which the trimmer is to be attached, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2. The rear end 'of the lever is pivoted to the standard M by means of a flatheaded screw, N, passing through the lever and through a vertical slot, it, (see Fig. 1,) in the standard, and which is made fast, when adjusted-up or down in said slot, by means of a nut, 0. (See Fig. 2.) The lever L is thus supported above as well as in front of the rock-shaft, and it is made to actuate the latter by means of a curved arm, 1?, (see Fig. 3,) fixed to therock-shaft, to extend thence to the lever L at a right angle therewith, and which projects into a transverse slot or opening, 1", formed in an enlargement, 8, of thelever. The free end of the curved arm P is fitted with a friction roller, Q,wh0se diameter nearly equals the distance between the top and bottom walls of the transverse slot 1", so that it shall bear constantly against the one or the other. The oscillation of the lever L in a vertical plane, produced by the reciprocation of the needle bar engaging its front end, is thus imparted to the free end of the arm P, which, being fixed to the rock-shaft, will cause it to oscillate in turn upon its axis as a pivotal center, and

the oscillation of the rock-shaft will produce the desired shearing movement of the cuttingblade I against the stationary cutting-bar J. The upward throw of thelever and the lifting of the cuttingblade is facilitated by means of a spring, Y, inserted under a project-ion at the base of the arm P, as shown by dotted lines in Fig. 3.

A thin supporting-plate, T, may be secured to the front end of the bed-plate A, so as to project from its under face out under the cutting blade and bar to receive and support the work as it is fed back from the needle to said cutters.

In the use of this trimming attachment the bed-plate A is fitted and secured in the customary manner upon the table X of the machine in such position as that the trimmer or cuttingblade I shall,when the plate B is forced by the lever E as far as possible toward the front end, be brought into line with the needlebar of the machine,with its free end slightly in the rear thereof, as shown in Fig. 2. By a movement of the lever E the trimmer is now set to such access a distance inside of the line of stitching of the needle as the width of edge to be left outside of the stitches may require, and the length of the oscillating lever L is adjusted by an eX-- tension of its outer section, (I, so that its ring g shall engage the needle-clamping screw on the needle-bar, the section being then made fast by its set-screw f. At each reciprocation of the needle-bar to form a stitch, the lever L is made to vibrate and to produce thereby an oscillation of the rock-shaft H, and consequently a shearing movement of the cuttingblade I, which shall operate to trim the cloth fed toward it by the feeding mechanism. The cutting-bar J, being held with a constant ten sion (which admits of adjustment by a movement of the nut U) against the side of the cutting-blade I,will afford a firm support for the goods, and it coacts with said blade to produce a neat, clean, close out of the goods operated upon, whatever may be their nature.

The sloth in the standard M,which receives the pivot N upon which the lever L vibrates, permits of avertical adjustment of said pivot, as occasion may require.

I claim as my invention- 1. The combination, in a sewing-machine trimmer, of arock-shaft, a radial cutting-blade upon the end of the rock-shaft, a self-adj usting cutting-bar held with aconstant tension against the heel of the blade, mechanism, substantially as described, for oscillating the rock-shaft,and means for adj usting the position of the cuttingblade with reference to the needle-bar of a sewing-machine, all substantially as set forth.

2. In a sewing-machine trimmer, the combination,with an adjustable supporting-plate,of a rock-shaft mounted in bearings on said plate, a radial cuttingblade on the end of the shaft, a parallel cutting-bar bearing against the outer face of said blade, a movable rod carrying said cutting-bar and supported by said plate, a spring actuating said rod and operating to produce a constant tension of the bar against the blade, and mechanism for actuating the rockshaft, substantially in the manner and for the purpose herein set forth.

3. The combination, in a sewing-machine trimmer, of a supporting-plate, a rock-shaft mounted in bearings upon said plate, a radial cutting-blade upon the end of the shaft,aselfadjusting cutting-bar bearing against the blade, an oscillating lever pivoted to a standard upon the plate, and a bent connecting-arm fixed to the rock-shaft to project therefrom at a right angle to its length and engage the oscillating lever to be actuated by its movements, substantially in the manner and for the purpose herein set forth.

4. The combination, with the bed-plate A, adapted to be fixed upon the table of a sewing-machine, of the adjustable plate B, having longitudinal movement upon said bed-plate, the cam-plate and lever E, formed with a curved slot, F, therein, and pivoted upon a pin, D, which, passing through a straight longitudisassa nal slot in the plate B, is made fast in the underlying plate A, a pin, G, projecting from the plate A into the curved slot, a rock-shaft, H, provided with a radial cutting-blade,1,and an oscillating lever, L, mounted upon said plate B, and which,actuating'said rock-shaft, is pro vided with a device for engaging the needlebar of the sewing-machine so as to be actuated thereby, all substantially in the manner and for the purpose herein set forth.

5. In a sewing-machine trimmer, the combination,with the rock-shaft H, carrying the radial cutting-blade I, and with a lever, L,oscillating in a vertical plane parallel with said shaft and adapted to be actuated by the needle-barof a sewing-machine, substantially in manner as described, of a connecting-arm, P, projecting from the rock-shaft at a right angle therewith into a transverse slot, 1", formed in 20 the oscillating lever L, and a friction-ro1ler,Q,

pivoted upon the end of said arm to engage the upper and lower walls of the slot, substantially in the manner and for the purpose herein set forth.

6. In a sewing-machine trimmer, the combination,with the fixed bed-plate A, the adjustable carrying-plate B thereon, the rock-shaft H, mounted upon said plate and provided with a radial cutting-blade, I, upon its outerend,

of a lever, L, pivoted to a standard, M, upon L CARL G. RUTZ.

Witnesses:

S. A. STAVERS, A. N. J ESBERA. 

